Category: BCM111

Starting in the late 1800s, production teams all around the world, fought for dominance in the film industry. From the very first successful film industry in France, to Australia’s very first feature-length film in 1906, to the dominance of Hollywood, countries have and still are in the ring to see who will come on top. But throughout this fight for dominance, when did the introduction of Bollywood and Chinese films become recognised?

Ezra and Rowden suggest that Transnational cinema “comprises both globalisation…and the counter hegemonic responses of filmmakers from former colonial and third world countries” (2006, p.1). They suggest further that “the Transnational can be understood as the global forces that link people or institutions across nations” (2006, p.1)

This element of transnational filmmaking can be identified through the cast, crew and the production’s location. For example actor Irrfan Khan predominantly works in Indians films. But is also known for his works in Hollywood and British films such as Slumdog Millionaire, Life of Pi, The Amazing Spiderman, and recent award winning movie, Jurassic World.

“Fueled by the internet, satellite networks, cable television, and DVD distribution, it is argued that Asian production centers will increasingly exploit cinematic contra-flows that draw upon structures of hybridity to meet increasing demand for glocalized content within globalized distribution networks” (Schaefer & Karan, 2010,pp.309).

With these new technological advancements, the impact of westernisation, and the acceleration of globalisation; countries such as India have produced more films than Hollywood over the years. Over the years the Indian film industry, known as Bollywood, has become popular worldwide. To prove that Bollywood has become known, statistics show that in 2011, Indian films ranked first by producing more than 1000 movies per year, with the USA coming second. Although they produced more films, Hollywood managed to beat Bollywood by earning more than 8 billion dollars in revenue. This is a clear indication of Hollywoods 80% dominance in the film industry, as their films have profited world wide.

One example of how Hollywood and Bollywood have collaborated ideas is through the popular movie, produced by Hollywood ‘Avatar’. The movie was known for the many awards they were awarded, except what wasn’t mentioned was how the characters were actually depicting Indian culture through their skin colour, god names, and Indian references.

The Times of India suggested Avatar was a treatise on Indianism “for Indophiles and Indian philosophy enthusiasts”, starting from the very word Avatar itself. Another critic found that elements of the film’s plot resembled such teachings and concepts of Hinduism as reincarnation of the soul, ecological consciousness, and incarnations of deities on Earth, commending Avatar and its director for “raising the global stature of Hinduism … in months”

So with the constant borrowing of cultural traditions barriers to keep westernised culture out, and the up increase of Bollywood films; will Bollywood become the new Hollywood by introducing new traditions?

The Korean wave (literally means “flow of Korea”) refers to the increase in the popularity of South Korean culture since the later 1990s. As the globalised phenomenon of Korean pop culture has increasingly become popular in many parts of the world, South Korea has developed economically, socially and gained global attention.

With the emergence of communication technologies and media networks, national cultural structures have become subjective, thus impacting traditional forms and the outcome of one’s identity. Through faster, more extensive, interdependent forms of worldwide exchange, travel, and interaction this process has accelerated along the Asian region.

Alongside the development and increase of worldwide links, through the development of media production, distribution and consumption, Asia has shown the signs of increasing diversity of nationalities. This meaning that the increase of worldwide consumption of new media forms has created spaces for new cultural transformations due to the adjustment of westernisation and globalisation.

In the midst of this new trend, the rise of South Korean television drama and cinema, following the popularization of South Korean music in many Asian markets, has created an interesting phenomenon which requires closer analysis of the transnational circulation and consumption of media products (Culture Industry and Cultural Capital, 2005).

As a result of the increasing production and performances, South Korea is now the twelfth largest economy in the world. These global effects of culture and media have given South Korea a chance to claim a presence in the film industry, music industry, and theatre, hence the major success of various films globally, for example: In 1999, the blockbuster action film, “Shiri”, attracted 5.78 million viewers and sold for US$1.3 million. The movie accomplished topping the Hong Kong box office for three consecutive weeks and is still a well-known film throughout Asia. This increasing popularity of South Korean entertainment has further developed and is now well known globally for its music “K-pop”

From well-packaged television dramas to slick movies, from pop music to online games, the South Korean media industry and its stars are increasingly defining what the people of East Asia see, listen to and play (Onishi, 2005).

Below is a mix of popular Kpop groups, one of which is the worldwide phenomenon PSY “Gangnam Style”. The mega-hit became the first video in history to surpass two billion views on YouTube. The track’s success has led a huge surge in K-pop’s popularity on the video platform, as Billboard.com shows, the video spent 5 weeks at no.1, spent 31 weeks on the U.S based Hot 100, and placed no.47 on the 2012’s year-end hot 100 chart.

Although Korean entertainment has a major language barrier, millions of K-pop fans around the world aren’t letting that stand in the way. CNBC reported that According to a report by YouTube, K-Pop video clips were viewed nearly 2.3 billion times in 235 countries in 2011. The views have jumped three-fold since 2010.

So with the major influence of Westernisation and globalisation, South Korea has significantly developed in more aspects than simply the entertainment industry, which has brought upon new relationships with the country.